With CFL in limbo, Alouettes QB Adams Jr. working as Uber Eats driver

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It might seem odd for the Alouettes’ highest-paid player, but because of financial — and probably boredom — reasons, Vernon Adams Jr. has been working as a driver for Uber Eats while he waits to see whether the Canadian Football League season will begin.

Adams, who signed a three-year contract extension in late January — one that included a signing bonus of close to $200,000 — said he can make up to US$500 on a good day.

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“I’m not broke, and I got a signing bonus … but the money was starting to run low,” he said on Wednesday. “Let me do something where I don’t have to be around too many people, drop it off and get a nice tip.”

Adams, 27, said a good part of his bonus has been invested for his post-CFL life. He also established trust funds for his children when they turn 18. He and his wife, Liz, welcomed their second child in late May. Adams also had a home gym installed — complete with weights, a football throwing net and portable sauna — in the garage of his off-season home in Tacoma, Wash.

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He has been living off the rest. But players get paid only after games and the regular season, which should have started in June, hangs in the balance because of the coronavirus pandemic.

“People might look at it like the starting quarterback is doing this? He shouldn’t be,” said Adams, who wears a mask while working, keeps hand sanitizer in the car and is careful never to touch anyone’s food containers. And, where possible, he keeps contact to a minimum.

“I’m just a regular person. I just drop off their food, be nice, wish them a good day and stay safe.”

Should the season be cancelled, many of Adams’s teammates will probably be seeking employment opportunities. Some have already started. Fullback Spencer Moore is working landscaping construction, linebacker D.J. Lalama represents a supplement company, fellow linebacker Tevin Floyd said on Twitter he earns US$1,000 weekly by grocery shopping for people, while long-snapper Martin Bédard is in wealth management and insurance, something he has done regularly each off-season.

The CFL’s hoping to play a six-game regular-season in Winnipeg, which would serve as a bubble environment, beginning in September. But that scenario will only work if the league is successful in securing a $30-million, interest-free loan from the federal government — funding that would be used to cover operating costs, including players’ salaries, COVID-19 testing and hub-city expenses.

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The league’s board of governors — the owners — have a conference call scheduled for Thursday. Later that day, team presidents are expected to conduct their own call. The governors will probably be asked, without government assistance, how willing would they be to cover the operating costs for a truncated season?

On top of that, the players would have to agree to a new collective agreement before anything proceeds because each team’s salary cap, which would have been $5.3 million this season, would be reduced.

Adams has been one of the league’s most outspoken players on social media, insisting players receive a portion of their salaries whether games are played or not. At first, he said players should receive half their salaries, but now believes 25 per cent might be more realistic.

Adams said players shouldn’t agree on a new collective agreement without some guarantees. He also remains perturbed that management officials — team presidents, general managers and coaches — have continued receiving up to 80 per cent of their salaries.

“Coaches might think I’m hating on them,” Adams said. “I’m not. But they’re getting 80 per cent of their salaries. We have families, just like them. We’re out here, working all off-season, grinding, putting pressure on our bodies, paying for massages and chiropractors, all to be prepared for a season. To put on a great product so you coaches can keep your jobs.

“I just wish we could get something. They could take more of a pay cut for us, because we’re doing it for them on the field.”

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While Adams said being home with his family this summer — when he normally would be playing — has been a blessing in disguise, he’s prepared to be separated for at least three months, provided the playing conditions are safe and fair. Adams also noted he’d be prepared to report any player circumventing the rules and leaving the hub environment.

“I don’t care who it is,” Adams said. “I can’t afford to miss two weeks of a six-week season. You don’t play, you don’t get paid. It’s already going to be reduced pay. I can’t afford to miss it.”

hzurkowsky@postmedia.com

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